Pavati Marine - About Us

Chuck Gros spent a lot of time on the Rogue with his family and friends as a boy. As he got older the passion for water sports became an obsession. Pavati Marine is located in Southern Oregon about five miles from Medford. Mountain views surround this area with the infamous Rogue River only minutes away. Chuck grew up in a family owned manufacturing business called Highway Products, Inc. and ironically, opened it's doors the same day he was born in 1980. Highway Products still builds aluminum truck bodies, truck tool boxes, and other accessories for the trucking industry today. So manufacturing came natural to Chuck. He worked his way up from emptying trash cans and sweeping floors for his allowance as a young boy to where he became and is presently Company Manager of Highway Products.

That was not enough for Chuck, he wanted to have his own business and since he loved being on the water he started developing ideas and plans for boats he had been thinking about for years. Thus, PAVATI Marine was born. "My goal is to continuously come up with new ideas", says Chuck. "That's what makes me tick."

Although Chuck may have picked one of the toughest times in history to start a business, his new ideas, some even patented, have already given PAVATI Marine a distinct advantage in a very competitive boat building industry. North West Sportsman magazine has already said. "Where does he come up with this stuff? We're going to keep an eye on this guy." Read the article here. Email: chuck@800toolbox.com

Highway Products, Inc. is located in southern Oregon just 37 miles north of the California state line in the small town of White City. The area is called the Rogue Valley and is surrounded by snow-capped mountains and mesa-topped buttes of Upper and Lower Table Rocks. Nearby is the City of Medford and world-renowned Crater Lake.

In the 1970s, owner Gene Gros worked in the Rogue Valley as a welder/fabricator for a raft-frame manufacture (Willies's R&D) specializing in white water rafting equipment, and welding repair. Next-door was a trucking outfit that would often contract with them to do repair work and to make items for their trucks; tool boxes was most asked for. Gene usually did the custom work and was given these duties. It wasn't long before word got out to semi drivers that you could get a great tool box made at Willie's R&D. "CB radios were the Internet in those days", says Gene. "They could make you or break you."

When Willie's R&D business picked up for boat work, they had to start turning away the tool box business. Gene saw a great opportunity. With Willie's blessings Gene started a new business with a focus on making tool boxes for trucks. The company had humble beginnings. Gene and his wife Debby started Highway Products in the garage underneath their two-story house. It just so happened that their first child, Chuck, was born the very same day that they started the business: November 22, 1980. All three of their children have grown up around Highway Products. Chuck is now the General Manager; His sister's Elizabeth and Virginia are working in the marketing department.

The Highway Products family knows that satisfied customers are the backbone of their business. The numbers tell the story: the majority of their business is by returning customers or by referral. There are now thousands of Highway Products on the nation's highways, proven tough enough to withstand the challenges of real road conditions. Their full product line includes standard semi and pickup truck boxes and cab guards, as well as truck flatbeds, RV tow bodies, cargo slides, service bodies, and are very well known for their custom capability. The Gros family and their dedicated employees promise to work hard for you. That's their plan now and it will always be their plan. They know that their success depends on it. Visit their Web site here.